# freecycle DMCA notice and Facebook **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 7, 2016, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026 "2016-08-07T12:05:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2016, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026/1 "2016-08-07T12:05:38Z")
I am one of the administrators of a Facebook page “Freecycle ##” (where ## are my department’s number). The Freecycle Network seems\* to have filed a DMCA notice with Facebook claiming violation of trademark rights. It is my understanding that this claim is baseless, the word “freecycle” is not itself a trademark (and indeed it seems “The Freecycle Network” may not even be a protectable trademark). This is what I received from Facebook > [@](#): > > We’ve removed or disabled access to the following content that you posted on Facebook because a third party reported that the content infringes or otherwise violates their trademark rights: > Group: Freecycle ## > > Facebook is not in a position to adjudicate disputes between third parties. If you believe that this content should not have been removed from Facebook, you can contact the complaining party directly to resolve your issue They also provided an email address associated with TFN. I have emailed asking that TFN withdraw their claim, perhaps unsurprisingly they haven’t replied. So, what am I to do, must I file a DMCA counter-notice? Is this difficult (for a British citizen living in France)? \*Facebook furnished the barest of information, even failing to inform me which content TFN claimed to be infringing their rights (I am supposing it is the word “freecycle”) ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2016, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026/2 "2016-08-07T12:12:17Z")
In case you haven’t already seen it, and on the off-chance that it might contain some relevant info, here’s the Freecycle Network’s trademark info page. [Trademark - FreecycleFAQ](https://wiki.freecycle.org/Trademark) ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2016, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026/3 "2016-08-07T12:23:00Z")
Trademark is not copyright. You did not get a DMCA notice. Words, phrases, or titles cannot be copyrighted but they can be trademarked. Freecycle is asserting their rights to a trademark. Apparently, it’s even a registered trademark (as evidenced by usage of the Ⓡ symbol), so good luck trying to defend against that. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2016, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026/4 "2016-08-07T12:48:09Z")
> [@Terminus\_Est](#): > > Trademark is not copyright. You did not get a DMCA notice. Words, phrases, or titles cannot be copyrighted but they can be trademarked. Freecycle is asserting their rights to a trademark. Apparently, it’s even a registered trademark (as evidenced by usage of the Ⓡ symbol), so good luck trying to defend against that. Yes they apparently own the mark \*\*[freecycle.org](http://freecycle.org) \*\*(and maybe **The Freecycle Network** ). But I believe they do not own the trademark **freecycle** it being a word in common usage before TFN’s inception. Also a search here indicates only ownership of the mark \*\*[freecycle.org](http://freecycle.org) \*\*[http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe](http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe) [http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=doc&state=4801:pxx5d5.4.5](http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=doc&state=4801:pxx5d5.4.5) [http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=doc&state=4801:pxx5d5.4.6](http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=doc&state=4801:pxx5d5.4.6) So if Facebook didn’t recieve a DMCA notice, what did they receive, and how may I counter that? ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2016, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026/5 "2016-08-07T13:04:25Z")
They own the trademark FREECYCLE in Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. They lost it in the US. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_great_unwashed/32/4791_2.png) [@The\_Great\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2016, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026/6 "2016-08-07T13:06:18Z")
Okay it seems that in Europe TFN have registered “freecycle” as a trademark. [https://euipo.europa.eu/eSearch/#basic/1+1+1+1/50+50+50+50/freecycle](https://euipo.europa.eu/eSearch/#basic/1+1+1+1/50+50+50+50/freecycle) [https://www.tmdn.org/tmview/welcome](https://www.tmdn.org/tmview/welcome) (this second link is most interesting, the application number 005722723 seems to be the only one to apply, what are the consequences that this mark does not have “Acquired distinctiveness”?) Silly Europeans. And anyway how does this effect a Facebook page, I half thought Facebook resided in the US and so was governed by US law? ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2016, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freecycle-dmca-notice-and-facebook/762026/7 "2016-08-07T13:25:51Z")
Find a different name - surely you don’t \*\*want \*\*to be confused with a well established organisation?